Critic Reviews

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my Microsoft Train Simulator experience, and expect to continue to do so for some time. If trains are your bag, this is your program. There are other train simulators out there, but this is bar none the most polished, most complete, and with a company like Microsoft backing it up, likely to be the best supported of them all. Kudos to Kuju and to Microsoft for a first rate product.

Train Simulator will be a joy for anyone with even a passing interest in trains. The ability to engage in realistic railroad operations and create new routes should appeal to rail fans and model railroaders alike. At the same time, the subject matter imposes some limitations that may not appeal as much to other gamers, at least at first. You won't find the thrilling danger of racing sims or the sheer freedom of flight sims. On the other hand, you will find a finely crafted, meticulous, and often beautiful re-creation of some very colorful trains and railways, with depth to satisfy a hard-core player and simplicity that lets you just enjoy the ride.

It's incredibly difficult to review a game so one-sided towards a particular type of consumer. On one hand, the simulator will wow train fanatics and will probably give them all they want. On the other hand, casual gamers would most likely be bored to tears. I'll say this, and let you decide: Microsoft Train Simulator is easily the best train simulator on the game market right now. If a train simulator interests you, then you need look no further.

Train Simulator is not for everyone, but rail buffs will absolutely love it. Where other train simulations have attempted to recreate a model railroading experience, this one is designed to give you a taste of the real thing. Microsoft has recreated not only modern railroading, but has brought the billowing smoke and rumbling engines of yesterday's steam locomotive era to life in exquisite detail. Grab your engineers cap and head for the tracks if you’re looking to create your own railway adventure -- you’re sure to find it here.

If you’re a Half-Life action fan who was bored to tears during that game’s opening tram ride, don’t give this title a second thought. On the other hand, if you are a lover of trains and their mystique, a sim fan, a driving fan, or just have the patience to try something different, then Train Simulator deserves a look. Even though the product has a complicated editor, a huge install size, and an absence of depicted passengers, its impressive graphics, sound effects, and realism make up for its shortcomings. Indeed, Train Simulator gives players young and old a new way to appreciate a powerful mode of transportation taken for granted, and puts “comin’ round the mountain” back in style.

In the end, TRAIN SIMULATOR is a highly detailed simulation of operating trains, with elements that will appeal both to sim buffs and strategy gamers. So pull that dusty old engineer’s hat out of the attic, ring the bell, and shovel that coal: You’ve got a schedule to meet.

Train Simulator is something of a mixed bag. There are some nice stretches of track to travel on and plenty of things to do along the way, but several of the activities are downright dull, while others are marred by questionable design decisions such as lengthy stops and the excessive use of temporary speed limits in the most boring parts of a track. This was a brave first attempt by Kuju and Microsoft which will no doubt appeal to trainspotters and railway enthusiasts, but for your average gamer there's not really enough here to make it an essential purchase. Cute, but unrewarding in the long run.